The Director

Dr. Rip Rice - Tenor Sax, Latin Percussion

The Ripper, as he is known by his friends, is a sax and former clarinet player who grew up in the Big Band era of the 1930s and 1940s. In his college days at what is now the University of Texas at Arlington (Texas), just prior to World War II, Rip played in and led the Stardust Melodiers, a 16-piece dance band at what is now the University of Texas at Arlington. Following the war and up until 1951, he played in, directed and managed the Music Makers, a 10-piece dance band that played in the Washington, D.C. area. Then came a stint at small combo work until 1955 when he retired from music to complete his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry at the University of Maryland (College Park), then to develop a business career so he could provide for his family.

In 1994, Rip returned to his sax playing, joining the Columbia Concert Band, the Columbia Jazz Band, the Starvation Army Band, the Rockville Concert Band, and formed and leads the Rockville Dixie Rascals. Rip also plays professionally with numerous combos, including all of the Clambaked combos (trio, quartet, quintet) and from time to time with the Docs of Swing combos. Although he plays all the saxophones, he prefers his tenor but loves his bari too.

In August 2003, with a little arm twisting, Rip agreed to become the Director of the Olney Jazz Troupe, now the Olney Big Band. In the beginning, Rip really wanted to play in the sax section and direct from there, as he had done in his younger days. But he soon found that he preferred listening to the whole band from out front. Moving in front of the band also gave him the opportunity to play Latin percussion instruments and to hone his MC abilities and develop relationships with audiences.

Now in his early 80s, Rip still consults in various aspects of ozone technologies. He travels to many places in the world to consult and to attend meetings of the International Ozone Association, which he co-founded in 1974. At these IOA meetings, the local organizers usually hire a jazz band for an evening function, and Rip is always given a tenor sax and invited to sit in. So far, his international musical scoreboard includes Amsterdam (Netherlands) twice; Kyoto, Japan; Lanier Islands, Georgia; San Francisco, CA; Dearborn, Michigan; Windsor, Canada; and Los Angeles, California.